Obama vows to keep fighting for Iowans

Nov. 3, 2012

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President Barack Obama addresses a crowd estimated at 5,000 on Saturday at a park in Dubuque, a city that is a traditional Democratic stronghold. / Charlie Litchfield/The Register

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DUBUQUE, IA. — President Barack Obama promised Iowans on Saturday that he will keep fighting for them if they help him win re-election.

“I know what change looks like, because I fought for it, and I delivered it, and I’ve got the scars to prove it,” he declared to cheering fans waving blue “Forward” placards in a chilly downtown park. “ ... I may be full of gray hair now, but I’m just as determined as I was four years ago.”

Three days before the election, the president touched on his campaign’s main themes before a crowd that police estimated at 5,000. He touted his achievements, including helping the economy recover from recession, saving the auto industry, making it easier for students to afford college, ending the Iraq war and killing Osama bin Laden.

He described his Republican opponent, Mitt Romney, as a skilled salesman. Obama disputed Romney’s claim that the Republican stands for “real change.”

“What he’s selling, we’ve tried it; it didn’t work,” Obama said. The president declared that Romney’s proposals are similar to what the country tried under President George W. Bush, including cutting taxes for the wealthy and giving big banks free rein. Obama said that his own policies are similar to those of President Bill Clinton, a Democrat whose two terms brought strong economic expansion.

Romney had appeared in Dubuque earlier Saturday. His campaign released a statement saying that Obama stands for keeping things the same. “I say it can’t stay this way,” Romney said. “He’s offering excuses. I’ve got a plan. I want to go to work. He wants to settle. Look, Americans don’t settle. We aspire, we reach, we dream, we achieve.”

The double-barrel campaigning in Dubuque highlighted how close the race is in Iowa, one of a handful of swing states that could decide the election.

Iowa State University political science professor Steffen Schmidt said the fact that both candidates were in Iowa on Saturday and both plan to return before Tuesday’s election is a sign of the times.

“This is such a brutal year and the race is so close that both candidates need the public free media from events and need the ramped up enthusiasm from their supporters to make sure they show up on Tuesday,” he said in an email Saturday. “It’s a desperate move to squeeze a few more votes out of Iowa (and the other battleground states too of course) to try and have that magic 270 electoral votes in the basket after the election. This is a year such as I’ve never seen. It’s almost impossible to understand how such a huge nation can be so completely divided.”

The Dubuque stop was part of a frantic day of swing-state campaigning for the president, who planned to hit Ohio, Wisconsin and Virginia on Saturday, and was headed for Colorado on Sunday.

“Our fight goes on because America is always at our best when everybody has a fair shot, everybody does their fair share, everybody plays by the same rules,” he declared. “That’s what we believed in 2008, that’s what we believe today, and that is why I’m running for a second term.”

Obama’s warm-up acts included a testimony by actress Kate Walsh, and a subdued, seven-song set from John Mellencamp, who was accompanied by a second guitarist and an accordion player. People in the crowd expressed confidence that the president would pull out the win in Iowa and the nation.

Carla Franklin-Ayers, 47, of Dubuque said the fact that Romney spoke in Dubuque earlier Saturday showed the Republican thought some voters here could be swayed away from Obama. “But I don’t think he’s going to be able to do it,” she said.

Matt Hackert, 34, of Dubuque came to the rally with his roommate, Wendy Wilwert, 36. Both already voted for Obama, but were pleased to get a chance to hear him Saturday. “Iowa’s a pretty important state,” he said. “Why are they both in Dubuque today? We’re a little confused by it. But, hey, we’ll take it.”

Wilwert said the president’s leadership and human touch have been on display during the response to Hurricane Sandy. “He’s out there, trying to help, being bipartisan,” she said.

Ed and Sheila Moore were in town from suburban Chicago to visit their son Danny, a Loras College student.

Ed Moore, 60, a union electrician, expressed confidence in Obama’s chances. “I think he’s going to have no problem, no problem,” he said.

The Moores were envious of their 21-year-old son, who was able to vote in Iowa, where his vote actually means something. Illinois, which is an Obama stronghold, has seen little action.